Counter for voting-machines.



No. 793,178. PATENTED JUNE 27, 1905. C. CHRISTENSEN.

COUNTER POR VOTING MACHINES.

APPLIGATION FAILED JULY 1e. 1903.

SHOM 1 my @u w ufo/L Christ Christensen UNITED STATES Patented June 27, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHRIST CHRISTENSEN, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO COLUMBIA VOTING MACHINE COMPANY, OF INDI- ANAPOLIS, INDIANA, A CORPORATION OF INDIANA.

COUNTER FOR VOTING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 793,178, dated June 27, 1905.

Application iiled July 18, 1903. Serial No. 166,157.

T all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHRis'r CHRis'ruNsEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Counters for Voting-Machines, of which the following is a speciiication.

The object of my invention is to produce io an inclosed counter which may be. operated in either direction by continuous or complete rotation of au operating-shaft, the arrangement being such that the step-by-step movement of the counting elements will take place duri 5 ing a comparatively short period of movement ot' the rotated operating' element, and the arrangement also being such that the operating-shaft may pass completely through the counter without becoming' disconnected 2o from operative engagement with the shaft.

To this end l have slig'htly modilicd the construction oil the common and well-known in- -closed counter known in the market as the Veeder counter, the rearrangement having especially in View the production of a counter especially adapted for use in connection with voting-machines of the type shown in my Patent No. 658,204.

The accompanying' drawings illustrate my 3o invention.

Figure l is a longitudinal section of a -Veeder counter embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view with a portionoi' an operating key or shaft in position. Fig. 3 is an end elevation with the inclosing cap and my attachment removed. Fig. lis an end elevation with my attachment in position; Fig. a side elevation of the nested counterwheels, and Fig. 6 a sectional detail of one of 40 the counting-wheels and its operating-pinion.

In the drawings, 10 indicates an inclosing casing, within which is arranged a pair ot nearly semi-annular bearing-lugs l1 11, which are usually Yformed integral with the casing l0. Journaled upon lugs Il within casing IO are rings 12, 13, 14, l5, and 16, which are nested together in the usual manner, as shown. Mounted upon a suitable shaft 17 is a series of pinions 18, 19, 9.0, and 21, which form a driving connection between the elements I2 50 and 13, I3 and 14k, It and I5, I5 and 16, respectively, in the usual well-known manner. The several elements are held in position by a cap QQ in the usual manner.

It has heretofore been customary in counters of this class for the element IQ to be the units-counting element, element 13 the tens, element 14 the hundreds, &c., and the element I2 has been provided with a plurality of teeth IQ, either ratchet or gear teeth, by which the element IQcau be advanced step by step ten steps for a complete revolution. One means of producing astep-by-step movement of the element 12 consisted ot' acompletely-rotatable shaft, which had upon its inner end. an eccentric upon which was mounted a non-1'0- tatable gear havingt'ewer teeth than the number ot' teeth 12' and meshing therewith, the arrangement being such that as the operating-shaft was rotated through a complete revo- 7O lution in either direction the element IQ would be advanced or retracted one-tenth of a revolution. This construction I iind to be unavailable 'i'or voting-machines, for the reason that the element l2 was in movement during slightly 75 more than one-haltl of the time of revolution of the operating-shaft, and as a consequence slight variations in the position ot' the operating-shaft might lead to uncertainty as to the proper position of the counting element l2. 8O In another 'form a continuously-rotating shaft is connected to the element I2 by means of intermediate friction-wheels which cause the element I2 to rotate in a direction opposite to that of the direction of rotation of the op 85 erating-shaft, so that the element I2 would be moved in one direction or another by any movement or' the operating-shaft. Such a construction besides being expensive is also objectionable in a voting-machine of the type shown in my patent mentioned, for the reasons already stated. In order to overcome these ditliculties, my invention consists in the removal of the numbers from the periphery of element I2, thus making the element I3 the 95 units element, the element 14 the tens, Sac., and providing means by which the element IQ may be directly connected to the operating-shaft 24 for continuous rotation therewith. This means consists of a disk 25, provided on its periphery with one or more teeth 26 to take between any two of the teeth 12 and provided with a central polygonal opening 27, adapted to receive the polygonal end 28 of the shaft 24. This results in the interposition of a completely-rotatable element between the units element and the operating-shaft and a connection between the completely-rotatable element 12 and the units element by pinion 18, whereby the element 12 will only operate upon the units element 13 during a tenthof its period of rotation. There is therefore a wide range in variation of position of the operating-shaft 24, which will not in any manner affect the units element 13, so that the shaft 24: may be out of its normal angular position to a considerable extent without endangering the proper position of the counting elements. It will be noticed also that the central perforation of the operating-disk 25 permits the extension of the operating-shaft completely through the counter, and thus renders possible the sliding of the counter as a whole upon the operating-shaft, yet without disconnecting the counter from the shaft. As a consequence the movement of the counter along the shaft does not permit the displacement of any of the counter elements by any movement other than a proper and permissible movement of the operating-shaft, and for this reason the counter is especially valuable for voting-machines, where it is essential that every safeguard be provided to prevent an improper manipulation of the counter.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a counter, the combination, with a plurality of coaxial counting elements and intermediate step-by-step operating-gearing, of an operating element coaxial with the counting elements and completely rotatable at each counting action, a step-by-step gearing between said completely-rotatable operating element and the units element operating upon the units element at each rotation through a very limited portion of the angular movement of the operating element, and an inclosing casing entirely inclosing said mechanism.

2. A counter consisting of, a plurality of coaxial rotatable'counting-wheels, an intermediate step-by-step gearing therebetween, an operating element completely rotatable at each counting action, an intermediate gear between said element and the first counting element whereby the operating element will act upon the first counting element at each rotation through only a very limited portion of its angular movement, an inclosing casing entirely inclosing said mechanism, and a completely rotatable operatingshaft extending through said casing and engaging the completely-rotatable operating element.

3. In a counter, the combination, with a plurality of coaxial completely-rotatable annular counting elelnents and intermediate stepby-step operating-gearing, of a completelyrotatable operating element, intermediate step-by-step operating-gearing between said operating element and the first counting element, a centrally-perforated disk 25 adapted to engage the operating element and coaxial therewith, an inclosing casing entirely inclosing said'mechanism, and a shaft extending through said casing and through said disk 25 and engaging said disk 25 to rotate the same in either direction, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a counter, the combination, with a plurality of coaxial counting elements and intermediate step-by-step operating-gearing, of a completely-rotatable operating element coaxial with the counting elements and completely rotatable at each counting action, and a step-by-step gearing between said completely-rotatable operating element and the units element operating upon the units element at each rotation through a very limited portion of the anguiar movement of the operating element.

5. A counter consisting of, a plurality of rotatable coaxial annular counter-wheels and intermediate step-by step gearing therebetween, an operating element coaxial with the counter-wheels and completely rotatable at each counting action, an intermediate gear between said element and the first counting element operating upon the units element at each rotation through only a very limited portion of its angular movement, and a completelyrotatable operating-shaft extending through and engaging the completely-rotatable operating element.

6. In a counter, the combination, with a plurality of coaxial completely-rotatable annular counting elements and intermediate stepby-step operating-gearing, of a completelyrotatable annular operating element coaxial with the counting elements, intermediate step-by-step operating-gearing between said operating element and the first counting element, a centrally-perforated disk 25 adapted to engage the operating element and coaxial therewith, an inclosing casing for the aforesaid parts, and a shaft extending through said disk 25, counting elements and casing and engaging said disk 25 to rotate the same in either direction, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, at Indianapolis, Indiana, this 2dday of June, A. D. 1903.

CHRIST CHRISTENSEN. Vitnesses:

ARTHUR M. Hooi), JAMES A. WALSH.

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